Meter and sensor integration for HOA, condo and building management
Meter readings are the data a building produces every month. Some come from residents who read a dial, some from a metering system, and some from smart meters and sensors that report on their own.
This page says how readings reach Unitify, which direction they move, what works today and what is set up per project for smart meters and sensors.
Short answer
Meter readings reach Unitify from residents in the app, from an Excel or CSV file, or over the API from your metering system. All three work today. Smart meters, AMR systems and sensors that expose an interface, including a Modbus or M-Bus gateway, are connected per project.
What this connection is for
Readings without chasing
Residents submit their own readings within the reading period, so the office stops collecting them by phone.
One place for all meters
Apartment meters, building meters and shared meters sit in one record with their history.
Sensor data
Leak, temperature or other sensor readings reach the building record where an interface exists.
What data moves, and in which direction
Each line says whether it works today or is set up for your project.
- Works today
Resident readings: into Unitify
Submitted in the resident app within the reporting period.
- Works today
Readings from a file: into Unitify
Excel, or a CSV file in the format an accounting system exports. Meters can be imported the same way.
- Works today
Readings from your metering system: into Unitify
Written over the API, with the source of each reading recorded.
- Works today
Readings: out of Unitify
Excel export of meter readings, for property meters as well.
- Set up per project
Smart meters and AMR systems: into Unitify
Readings pulled or pushed through the device or system interface. Built per project.
- Set up per project
Sensors: into Unitify
Events and values from sensors that expose an interface, through a gateway where needed. Built per project.
How a connection is set up
- Works today
Resident app
Nothing to connect. Residents enter readings and the office sees them.
- Works today
File
Import in the admin panel, in Excel or CSV. Failed rows come back as a file you can fix and load again.
- Works today
Open API
A mutation registers readings for many meters at once, from any system that can call the GraphQL API. Part of the Pro plan.
Open API and webhooks - Set up per project
Gateway or device API
A Modbus or M-Bus gateway, or the metering system's own API. We build the read from the interface documentation.
What you provide
The meter list
Meters by apartment and building, with their type and serial numbers.
The interface documentation
For a smart meter, gateway or metering system: its API or protocol documentation and a test unit.
A sample of readings
A real export or reading file to check the import against.
The honest limits
- A meter with no interface cannot be read remotely. Without an API, a gateway or a protocol we can reach, the reading stays a manual entry by the resident.
- No ready-made driver for every model. Smart meters and sensors are connected per project, and we check the exact model first.
- Reading rules follow the country. How often readings are due, and by whom, depends on local rules; Unitify records the readings, it does not set the rule.
Meters and sensors: questions
Can residents submit meter readings in the app?
Yes. Residents enter readings in the resident app within the reporting period, and the office sees them without collecting them by hand.
Can you import readings from a file?
Yes. An Excel file or a CSV file in the format an accounting system exports. Rows that fail come back as a file to correct and load again.
Can our metering system send readings automatically?
If it can call the GraphQL API, yes: readings for many meters are registered in one call and the source is recorded. The API is part of the Pro plan.
Do you connect smart meters and sensors?
When they expose an interface: an API, a protocol we can reach, or a Modbus or M-Bus gateway. It is built per project, and we check the exact model first.
What if my meters are not smart?
Then readings come from residents in the app or from a file. Many buildings run this way.
Which meter makers do you support?
We do not publish a list. A meter or gateway with a documented interface can be connected under a project; send the documentation.
Related
Tell us which system you run
Start free with one building, no card and no call. Or book a walkthrough and name the systems and devices you want connected; we confirm each one before you commit.